BOSTON, MA—December 22, 2020—With what is potentially the most chaotic lame-duck session in U.S. history, the Health and Fitness Recovery Act of 2020 (H.R.8485) continues to pull in new sponsors. Currently, the bipartisan Health and Fitness Recovery Act has 22 sponsors from 12 states and D.C. The bill’s most recent sponsors include U.S. Reps. Brendan Boyle (D-PA),…
BOSTON, MA—December 21, 2020—The International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) announced today that Jim Schmaltz will become the editor-in-chief of Club Business International (CBI), the association’s flagship monthly magazine, effective with the January 2021 issue. “We are thrilled to welcome Jim in a leadership role to our editorial team,” said Jay Ablondi, IHRSA’s publisher and executive vice…
Health professionals who sign the “Medical Endorsement of Exercise & Lifestyle Medicine” letter affirm “[health] clubs provide a place for our patients to work on their physical and mental health and experience much-needed socialization in a safe, controlled environment.” Decisions about COVID-19 must be based on facts and evidence. Research and data are increasingly demonstrating…
Medical and public health experts speak on the critical need to keep gyms open. Lawmakers loosen restrictions on health and fitness clubs. From the start of the pandemic, lawmakers depicted health clubs in a negative light and the public’s perception of clubs turned dismissive. Since then, the health and fitness industry has been fiercely advocating…
BOSTON, MA—December 17, 2020—The International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) has released the 2020 IHRSA Health Club Consumer Report. This year’s report, sponsored by ClubReady, discusses health club member growth and trends over the past decade, along with the impact of the pandemic on fitness consumers. Based on a nationwide sample of more than 18,000 interviews,…
IHRSA launches the Active & Safe Commitment at a time when exercise is more important than ever to global health. IHRSA has launched the Active & Safe Commitment, an initiative to reaffirm the health club industry’s unyielding dedication to safety at this time when exercise has never been more important to global health. Developed by industry…
The United Health & Fitness Federation brought pertinent IHRSA resources to Indian lawmakers in hopes of reopening health and fitness clubs. Now members can return and work on improving their overall health. For the first time in months, India’s health and fitness clubs can reopen their doors to the public. With the approval of stakeholders and the…
BOSTON, MA—November 19, 2020—Based on data from major payment processing firms, 15% of fitness clubs and studios in the U.S. have closed permanently as of September 30. Up to one in four American health clubs may close by the end of the year as club operators grapple with the coronavirus pandemic’s disproportionate impact. “In over…
Precision Nutrition’s special report reveals emotional and stress eating as top nutrition challenges for better health in 2020 TORONTO, Canada—November 7, 2019—Precision Nutrition, an industry leader in healthy eating and lifestyle coaching, released its special report “2020 Nutrition, Fitness, and Health Trends & Insights,” which identifies the areas of Emotional and Stress Eating, Lack of…
We’ve made the difficult decision to postpone the upcoming IHRSA European Congress 2020: Virtual Edition to the spring of 2021. With countries across Europe going into another round of COVID-19 related lockdowns, IHRSA has made the difficult decision to postpone the upcoming IHRSA European Congress 2020: Virtual Edition to the spring of 2021. After extensively consulting with many…
BOSTON, MA—October 22, 2020—The International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) and the Medical Fitness Association (MFA) have formed a strategic partnership with a common goal of promoting exercise as a primary prevention tool and cost effective treatment option for people with chronic illnesses. As the coronavirus pandemic lingers, the health and fitness industry continues…
BOSTON, MA—October 20, 2020—The International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) released first-of-its kind data from a new national survey* of Americans with gym memberships that addresses their physical and mental state throughout COVID-19 pandemic. The full results from the study, which was conducted in collaboration with leading international insights company Kelton Global, a Material…